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BART Service Struggles After Strike Ends; Drivers Face Gridlock

OAKLAND, CA - OCTOBER 21: A Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) sign stands at a closed station on October 21, 2013 in Oakland, California. BART workers continue to strike after contract negotiations between BART management and the transit agency's two largest unions fell apart last week. Management and unions agreed on the financial specifics of the contract but differed on workplace safety rules. An estimated 400,000 commuters ride BART each day. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) — BART service was slowly getting back to normal but many commuters still opted to drive to work Tuesday morning, and a series of crashes has slowed traffic to a crawl on many Bay Area roadways.

“Boy, there are a lot of accidents out there today,” Metropolitan Transportation Commission spokesman John Goodwin said.

A 6:45 a.m. motorcycle accident on the Bay Bridge’s westbound incline had traffic backed up for miles on several highways leading to the bridge.

Traffic was also snarled by crashes and stalls on the San Mateo Bridge and on northbound Interstate Highway 880, Goodwin said.

“Now that we look back on the couple days of the BART strike on Friday or Monday, we really need to thank our lucky stars that as many folks as were on the road, they weren’t colliding with each other,” he said.

BART Service Resumes: Many Still Using Ferry Service

Goodwin said that during the strike, commuters were leaving for work extra early. The metering lights at the Bay Bridge were activated at about 5:30 a.m., when typically they don’t go on until up to an hour later, he said.

Tuesday, people were leaving later again, Goodwin said.

BART Service Resumes Tuesday; Staffing Issues, Delays

“Everybody’s on the road right now,” he said shortly before 8 a.m.

He said he expects the afternoon commute to be smoother.

Meanwhile, BART is back up and running but not at full capacity.

“We have about a dozen fewer trains than we would normally have right now,” BART spokesman Jim Allison said.